“And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.” 

Matthew 11:6 KJV

We live in a world of paradox. On the one hand, people say they do not want to be offensive.  They believe in tolerance and acceptance.  Yet at the same time, many of those same people take great pleasure in offending the Followers of Christ.  We saw this recently in the opening ceremonies of the Olympics in Paris when the Olympic Committee took great pleasure in mocking and defaming the Name of Christ.  The Followers of Christ are ridiculed, vilified maligned, and marginalized with impunity by many different individuals, groups, and institutions.  Such intolerance has become openly accepted and fully embraced by those who proclaim tolerance as one of their highest virtues.  Their hypocrisy and double standard is blatantly obvious.   But they do not realize that Christ will ultimately have the final word!  (Psalm 37: 1-2).

Although such things offend us,  we must remember that this is nothing new.  The Followers of  Christ have experienced this throughout history.  It continues in our day.  Currently, some 80 countries around the world persecute those who follow Christ.   Jesus was hated in His day!   And He promised that those who followed Him would also be hated as well. (John 15:18, 1 John 3:13).   The reason for this hatred is that those who are enslaved by darkness are offended when the Light of Christ exposes their sin.  No one likes for their sin to be exposed.  It makes one uncomfortable.   It can even make one angry.   

They do not realize that the purpose of the Light of Christ is not to bring condemnation (John 3: 17-20) but instead to bring salvation and deliverance from the darkness that has enslaved them.  His Light illuminates the path they are on.  It helps them to see the path of destruction they are traveling and enables them to find the only way of escape.   If we were driving down a road whose bridge had been washed out by a storm, we would want someone to warn us of the danger that lay ahead.   That is exactly what Jesus does when He exposes our sin!  He is warning us of the danger we are facing and is seeking to save us from certain destruction.

https://www.bible.com/bible/1/jhn.3.16His shining Light gives hope where there was none before.  His Light points the way to a life that is full of meaning, purpose, and destiny!  (John 10:10).  It is a life that one can experience now and all throughout eternity.   (John 3:16).   

James W. Black